Indeed, according to Vaughters, Cannondale-Drapac could have been Team Netflix:But this time I was waiting for a call from Netflix. We had put together a plan to kick off its European-branding campaign in a way nothing else could. We were in talks to announce a naming-rights sponsorship of our top-level cycling team just before the start of the Tour de France, the world's largest annual sporting event.If only the streaming giant wasn't so short-sighted:"We can't promote that," I was told. Which was too bad, for Netflix. They’d missed out on the best deal in sports sponsorship, especially when it comes to the younger generation.

Skujins immediately tried to get back up as a neutral service mechanic picked his bike up, but struggled to stand after appearing to hit his head.He then tried to mount his bike but then crashed on his left-hand side as he continued to look dazed.Appearing to try to retrieve his Garmin which had fallen off in the second crash, Skujins then almost collided with riders chasing on as they came past and he tried to cross the road back to where his bike was....Meanwhile, there were floods of messages across social media from shocked viewers who were clear the Skujins shouldn’t have been allowed to continue the race.Unfortunately his team car was some way behind with Skujins in the breakaway, and phone and TV signal wasn’t allowing the team back at the buses to see what was happening on the road.

Message finally conveyed to DS. Thank you. I'm in a car park with team busses. No TV. No cell coverage up where race was.

In no way is this to blame anybody for what happened, nor is it to suggest frightening injuries don't occur in other sports, but I also doubt the marketing people at Netflix are exactly kicking themselves right now for not putting their logo on that torn jersey.

I'm also not sure cycling has some magical pull for "millennials:"Traditional team sports do not have the same appeal to millennials that they did to older generations; millennials want to participate in sports and their orbiting cultures, not simply sit in recliners with their remotes and consume them. This tech-savvy generation is finding ways around traditional broadcasting avenues, streaming huge amounts of content, sports included.
It's really time we stopped talking about millennials as though they're a different form of human. They're not. Trust me, I live right next to a college, and I can assure you that the dumb traditional sports bro is in no way a dying breed. By the same token, the Europhile streaming "alt-sports" such as cycling is just as likely to be an aging Fred as a so-called millennial. In fact, they're probably more likely to be older, since they have office doors they can close.

And sure, young people seem to like riding bikes in cities, but does that really translate into wanting to watch bike racing on TV?Go to any major city, and you’ll see millennials cruising around on their bicycles, and there are bike lanes popping up everywhere. In no other sport is there a line that connects the kids out learning to ride bikes and bike commuters to amateur racers and world-class professional cyclists. They all experience a similar thing.I absolutely agree that adult cycling fans are much more likely to be riders themselves than, say, adult baseball fans are to be baseball players. However, I'm not sure the average urban "millennial" commuting in one of those new protected bike lanes gives a shit about pro cycling. I also think the thing about cycling being the only sport in which there's "a line that connects the kids...to amateur racers and world-class professional cyclists" is totally untrue. What do you call Little League? You can plug your kid into traditional sports right out of the womb, but good luck entering your grade-schooler into a bicycle race. In fact, good luck finding a grade-schooler who even knows how to ride a bicycle.Of course, one way in which cycling is different from many other sports is that the sponsor's name becomes the team name, and so the spectators effectively become fans of that company:Sponsors of teams usurp those ad buys because they’re woven into the stories of the athletes and the race itself. Most of us tune out ads during a football game, but it’s impossible to ignore sponsors in cycling. They’re on the clothing, but they’re also on the air for hours each race, and then in the media all day, as commentators announce the team names and myriad publications cover every race. Sponsors become part of a team’s identity. That’s just not for sale in any another sport.

However, there's only one problem with that: they're still just team names. See, people tend to take names for granted, and therefore it's incredibly easy to not give a shit what these companies actually do, even if you're a fan of the teams they sponsor. For example, I've seen the name "Cannondale-Drapac" every day for months, and while obviously I know what Cannondale is it wasn't until I started writing this very blog post that I even bothered to look up Drapac--and in case you're wondering, here's what I came up with:

Drapac Capital Partners is a property funds management business that identifies value through unorthodox means.With Australian origins and an established track record, we set up operations in the US in 2011 to capitalize on the unprecedented investment opportunities following the financial crisis. Our core investment focus is on land, and we never take a short term view allowing us to do what others cannot – make logical and rational investment decisions.
Yes, millennials love property funds management.

Given all this, it's harder and harder to imagine Netflix wanting to sponsor a cycling team:

For Netflix, this would have been the perfect move because it captures the already established massive audience of Tour de France viewers without paying a media competitor to be ignored during a commercial placed in the race. By putting its brand name on one of the main actors in the content people were viewing, Netflix would have used the efforts and money of competitors to promote their own channel. Genius pirate swashbuckling!

Would it really have, though? Does a content creator really want to put its name on content it can't control? Netflix can control the plot twists in "House of Cards," but they can't control the doping scandals in the Tour de France.

Of course, there certainly are companies that do benefit from cycling sponsorship, such as Garmin:

Garmin, a company that was involved with cycling on a title-level for seven years, saw its market share, brand recognition, and overall revenues soar in the fitness sector after launching its products through a named team: Team Garmin. It was the exception that had enough lateral thinkers in corporate headquarters to figure out that the real bottom line is sometimes better when you take a few risks. And with risks come rewards.

Which makes total sense, since they make a product for cyclists. Indeed, since cycling fans are so likely to be cyclists themselves you'd think there would be more bike and component companies sponsoring cycling teams...until you consider it's really expensive to do so and the fundamentals are terrible due to the sport's exhausting scandal cycle.

If anything, the future of the sport lies in sponsorship from the Persian Gulf countries:

"...we set up operations in the US in 2011 to capitalize on the unprecedented investment opportunities following the financial crisis. Our core investment focus is on land, and we never take a short term view allowing us to do what others cannot – make logical and rational investment decisions."

That's barely even euphemistic for: "we got rich bought up all the houses that people lost when the economy crashed and they couldn't keep up with their mortgages."

"They’re on the clothing, but they’re also on the air for hours each race, and then in the media all day, as commentators announce the team names and myriad publications cover every race. Sponsors become part of a team’s identity. That’s just not for sale in any another sport."

If Vaughters has secured sponsorship from Drapec, why is he pissing and moaning about Netflix's lost opportunity? If I was Drapec, I wouldn't be happy about that at all.

Maybe Drapec is doing it because they will ultimately want to unload all their bargains in real estate and they want millenials to buy from them when they finally decide to settle down? Maybe this thing called the internet has made the world aware of Netflix, even in places where it's not yet available?

The worst thing for Vaughters was getting the MBA. Did he go to the Wharton School of Business like the clown in the White House? These greedy pricks want to take all the SPORT out of sport and replace it with money, money, money!

Even people who race bikes don't pay attention to pro bike racing. I pay close attention to it, but most of the guys I ride and race with couldn't name another race besides the Tour and couldn't name five pro riders if you spotted them Froome and Cavendish.

A UCI reality TV show would be great. Corruption and controversy while jet-setting is literally endless. Whose been arrested this week? Where were the drugs found this time? How much money does it cost to never test positive? How many bribes did the management committee get this week?

The list of seemingly impeachable crimes grows by the minute — one second, he's leaking secrets to a foreign adversary, the next, he's openly admitting to obstruction of justice on national television. But contrary to what you may have heard from the lamestream media, Congressional Republicans aren't afraid of him.

They're more than willing to impeach the president, assuming he commits what they consider an impeachable offense.

Below are a list of crimes that Congressional Republicans would consider impeachable offenses. Of course, they'd need a large number of votes to secure impeachment, including the House and two thirds of the Senate. If Trump commits one of these offenses, however, they'll courageously push forward — their Oath is to the Constitution, not the President.1. Destroys 90 percent of the civilized world

Let's be honest: do we really need 100 percent of the Western world? Who's really going to miss Luxembourg?

If President Trump wants to destroy most of the civilized world, that's completely within his Constitutional right — but once he starts going after their Caribbean all-inclusives, they will consider a strong talking-to.2. Instead of shooting someone on Fifth Avenue, tries to give them health insurance

If President Trump wants to shoot someone on Fifth Avenue, that's absolutely within his jurisdiction as president. Were he to try and give them actual insurance, that would be considered extreme executive overreach and an impeachable offense.3. Says something nice about Hillary

Hating Hillary Clinton is the GOP's only consistent policy position over the last 20 years. They're not going to allow Trump to go rogue on this one.4. Uses the nuclear weapon arsenal to destroy the sun

The moon? No problem. Losing the sun, however, will affect the tan lines they've spent their whole career building. Impeach!5. Jeopardizes their chance for re-election

As president, Trump has the right to do whatever the hell he wants. If, however, the president in any way effects the party's chances for re-election, Congress retains the right to impeach him and replace him with someone way hotter.

6. Dies

The GOP will gladly take up articles of impeachment once Trump is already dead.

7. Commits to what he promised during the election

If Trump actually tries to rebuild the manufacturing sector or protect Medicare and Social Security or try to give healthcare to everyone, that will be considered an impeachable offense.

8. Lets his approval rating drop below 30 percent

Low approval ratings are an impeachable offense, per an article written by Paul Ryan on Medium.9. Goes to jail

If the President goes to jail, Congress will potentially consider articles of impeachment — if and only if it prevents him from signing their executive orders.10. Raises their taxes

The founding fathers dreamed of a country free of estate taxes and rich with capital gains loopholes. If Trump does anything that affects their personal incomes, or the assets of lobbyists they care about, that is a sure sign that he has gone too far, and that he will be removed from office once and for all.

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About Me

While I love cycling and embrace it in all its forms, I'm also extremely critical. So I present to you my venting for your amusement and betterment. No offense meant to the critiqued. Always keep riding!